======================================================= Part One: FEDORA CORE SUPPORT LIST - UNOFFICIAL USER'S GUIDE ======================================================= * BEFORE POSTING TO THE LIST * ================================ There are a number of ways you can find help within your system. If you don't find the answer there, try to look into the list archives before posting a question. This is a high volume list and somebody has probably had the same problem you are now trying to fix. See *section 2* below for a list of useful resources. * IF YOU STILL CAN'T FIND AN ANSWER * ===================================== If you don't find a suitable answer for your question in the resources described in section 2, then writing to the list is a good idea. To make sure your post is read and answered, we wrote these guidelines. You may also find useful to look at Charles Curley's netiquette guide at http://www.charlescurley.com/netiquette.html. 1. === NO HTML MAIL, PLEASE === Set your mailer to send only plain text messages to the list (http://www.expita.com/nomime.html). Why? HTML is designed for web pages not emails, and uses a lot more bandwidth. Many list members actually block HTML because it is used for malicious code. (http://www.georgedillon.com/web/html_email_is_evil.shtml) 2. === STARTING A NEW SUBJECT === When you send in a new topic, *do not* start by replying to an existing message, but rather, start a new message to "fedora-list@xxxxxxxxxx". This keeps messages organized by thread, for people who like to use threads (on high-volume mailing lists like this one, threads can be a great convenience). 3. === WRITE A GOOD SUBJECT LINE === Make a subject line that tells us what you need. Try "Can't get past partitioning on FC3" instead of "Argg - help me!!!". Why? So that people with certain skills, looking for someone to help, will notice your message. That helps you get help from the right people quickly. 3. === IF YOU ARE REPLYING TO A MESSAGE === Trim away irrelevant text so we can concentrate on the topic. Make sure we can tell what you are replying to. Place each part of your reply after the text it addresses. Most mail readers put a '>' character in front of each replied to line. It gives a conversational flow to the text, and people know what you're replying to. 4. === LET US KNOW WHEN YOUR QUESTION IS ANSWERED === When you get a solution to your question (or find it yourself after posting to the list), *reply* to your original e-mail describing what solved your problem. -- CONTROVERSIAL ISSUE -- Add a [SOLVED] to the end of the subject line. This will let people know that you don;t need help anymore with this and can look for other posts to help. Also, it makes a search in the archives easier when someone has a related problem in the future. 5. === UNSUBSCRIBING === To unsubscibe from the list you can visit the Fedora Mail List web page at http://www.redhat.com/mailman/listinfo/fedora-list ===================================================== Part Two: USEFUL RESOURCES FOR LINUX AND FEDORA ===================================================== 1. GETTING HELP FROM YOUR SYSTEM There are many ways to get information from your system. Get a terminal window by right clicking on the desktop. In the window type one of the following (without the '$', and substitute <application-name> with the name of the application you are having trouble with.) $ man <application-name> $ info <application-name> name $ locate <stuff you want to know about> $ rpm -qd <packagename> 2. DOCUMENTATION Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 is based on the Fedora project. So, the RHEL documentation should be helpful for the Fedora user: http://redhat.com/docs http://www.redhat.com/docs/manuals/enterprise/ http://fedora.redhat.com/docs Also, good help can be found here: The Unofficial Fedora FAQ: http://www.fedorafaq.org/ The Linux Documentation Project: http://www.tldp.org/ Fedora Core Release Notes: http://fedora.redhat.com/docs/release-notes/ Fedora Tracker: http://fedoratracker.org Fedora Extras: http://fedoraproject.org/extras 3. LIST ARCHIVES http://www.redhat.com/mailman/listinfo/fedora-list http://dir.gmane.org/gmane.linux.redhat.fedora.general http://marc.theaimsgroup.com/?l=fedora-list&r=1&w=2 4. GOOGLE IT! http://google.com http://google.com/linux ===================================================== Acknowledgements ================ We are all regular member of the list and discussion about netiquette is ongoing. Previously established conventions are always being re-questions. So, please read this in the spirit of creating an evolving consensus. This document grew from the work of James McKenzie, Duncan Lithgow, Gustavo Seabra and various peoples useful comments. This guide is in the spirit of the "RedHat Install List (RHIL) Unofficial User's Guide": http://www.rhil.net/docs/rhil-guide.html and "How To Ask Questions The Smart Way": http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html
